Bus fare hike draws flak from opposition; govt. says it’s needed to induct 2,800 electric buses

The government’s decision to allow the Telangana State Road Transport Corporation (TSRTC) to hike city bus fares within the Greater Hyderabad zone, and sparing the rural areas and the district buses is being criticised by the political parties as an aim to benefit in the local body polls while burdening the city travellers.

The fare hike was ₹5 for the first three stages on ordinary city services and ₹10 from the fourth stage onwards. For Metro Express services, fares rose by ₹5 at the first stage and ₹10 for each subsequent stage. Officials said the move aims to generate over ₹300 crore to support infrastructure development for the induction of around 2,800 electric buses in the city, replacing the existing diesel fleet.

While the Congress government described the fare revision as a necessary step towards green mobility, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Bharat Rashtra Samiti (BRS) demanded an immediate rollback, calling the decision “anti-poor.” BJP State president N. Ramchander Rao said the government’s move amounted to “giving with one hand and taking away with the other,” referring to the continuation of free rides for women alongside a steep fare hike. “The ₹10 increase in minimum city bus fares has hit common commuters hard,” he said.

The BRS working president K T Rama Rao accused the government of betraying the public’s trust. “This steep hike only reinforces the Congress’s fake assurances and failed governance,” he remarked, adding that after the local body polls even the rural and inter-district passengers too would be burdened.

Congress leaders pointed out that fare adjustments were not new and that the previous Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) government had also introduced hikes under different names, such as the safety cess, increased bus pass charges, and rounding up fares to the next multiple of five rupees. The RTC officials, meanwhile, clarified that the Mahalakshmi scheme, which provides free rides to women on TSRTC buses, will continue without change. Reimbursements from the government have been “regular though slightly delayed,” officials added.